UK Consumers Continue to Demand Lower Carbon Products Despite Ongoing Financial Crisis

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LONDON, December 18, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — - UK Consumers Look to Industry for Solutions to Help Reduce Their Carbon Footprints

A report issued today by strategic management consultants L.E.K. Consulting suggests that a large proportion of consumers would be prepared to alter their buying behaviour and switch to a lower carbon alternative if reliable information on a product’s carbon footprint was made readily available. The report also reveals that consumers are increasingly looking to manufacturers, producers and retailers to help them to make informed choices and reduce the embedded carbon in the products and services they buy.
The L.E.K. Consulting UK Carbon Footprint Report 2008, which was based on a YouGov poll of 1,965 UK(1) consumers, found that 54% of respondents would value information on a product’s carbon footprint when making a buying decision. If they had this information, 41% said they would switch to an alternative product that wasn’t their first choice and 20% would use a less convenient retailer in order to achieve a smaller carbon footprint. Importantly, despite the survey being conducted at the height of the ongoing financial crisis, a net 11% of respondents also stated that they were more prepared to pay extra to lower their carbon footprint than they were 12 months ago.
“The willingness of consumers to alter their buying behaviour to select more carbon-friendly products shows how seriously this issue is being taken,” said Peter Smith, Partner at L.E.K. Consulting. “Evidence of mounting consumer pressure, combined with the additional legislation that is likely to result from increasingly challenging carbon reduction targets, strengthens the argument for businesses to address carbon’s strategic implications.”
The survey also looked at the issue of who is responsible for carbon footprints. A significant proportion of respondents (41%) believe that manufacturers and producers should take the lead in minimising the carbon footprint of their future purchases, well ahead of government (19%) and consumers themselves (20%).

Compared to results from L.E.K.’s 2007 survey, 3% less are looking to the government to take action and 4% more are relying on manufacturers and producers or retailers/ supermarkets, indicating that consumers are increasingly looking to the private sector to come up with the solutions that will enable them to reduce their carbon footprints.

Nevertheless, it seems that industry has a long way to go to convince consumers of its ‘green’ credentials. Over half of the respondents (57%) stated that the green claims of retailers and manufacturers were either ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ credible. Also, when rating industries on a scale of 1 to 5 (where 1 is poor and 5 is excellent) for their efforts to be ‘green’, the averaged results illustrate that no single industry is seen to be doing well, with all scores below the median rating of 3. Of those rated, construction and housing is considered to be the best performing, with an average score of 2.61, and the travel and transport industry is seen to be doing the worst, with an average score of 2.33. Overall, these results show little change from last year, indicating that minimal progress has been made by retailers and manufacturers in demonstrating action and communicating a convincing message to their customers.
Peter Smith concluded: “Manufacturers and producers who act now to address carbon as a core business issue have the opportunity to create competitive advantage, developing a credible and profitable approach to carbon management, while mitigating future business risks.”